Acute Ablation of Precursor Cells
Recent studies have shown that there is a decrease in neurogenesis in the hippocampus after irradiation therapy. The decrease in neurogenesis is the result of a reduction in the stem cell pool due to apoptosis. However, the question remains whether radiation therapy results in a complete ablation of the stem cell pool in the hippocampus or whether some stem cells survive. Animal studies have been performed by Monje and Palmer to determine if there is an acute ablation of the stem cell pool. In the study, rats were subjected to 10 Gy dosage of radiation. The 10 Gy radiation dosage is comparable to that used in irradiation therapy in humans. One month after the reception of the dosage, living precursor cells from these rats’ hippocampus were successfully isolated and cultured. Therefore, a complete ablation of the precursor cell pool by irradiation does not occur otherwise no living precursor cells could be isolated.
Read more about this topic: Radiation Induced Cognitive Decline
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